Houston socialists celebrate 99th anniversary of the October Revolution

Tuesday, November 1, 2016 15:41

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Houston, TX – Over 50 students and activists gathered at the Montrose Center here, Oct. 25, to celebrate the anniversary of the Great October Revolution of 1917. 99 years ago, under the leadership of Lenin and the Communist Party, the Bolsheviks seized state power in Russia and created the first ever socialist state. The celebration highlighted the achievements of socialism in the Soviet Union and what we can learn today from the Soviet experience.

The event began with singing the Internationale; there were many people there who were hearing the Internationale for the first time. After singing the Internationale, there were three panelists who represented the Houston Socialist Movement, the Communist Party USA, and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

David Smith, of the Houston Socialist Movement said, “The Russian Revolution was a great victory for working people internationally. We are here today to commemorate the achievements of the Russian Revolution so that we may be inspired to make a socialist revolution here in the U.S. The massive turnout today shows that people today are tired of living under capitalism and are looking for an alternative: the October Revolution gives us the vision of such an alternative, socialist society.”

Michael Kouznetzov, a student at the University of Houston, said “The October Revolution empowered working people to build as society entirely in the interests of the working class. They built a society free from racism and all forms of exploitation and oppression. We are here to both celebrate the October Revolution and learn from their experience.”

Ian Cox of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization said, “The Russian Revolution created a society where people had access to free education, health care, and where capitalism had been replaced by socialism. In the Soviet Union, people of different nationalities were granted full equality, and the oppressive system of imperialism was ended. There were no racist figures like Donald Trump or Ted Cruz in the USSR, as the material basis for national oppression was eliminated. The Soviet Union gave assistance to people fighting for national liberation against imperialism. It was the first society where women had equality with men, and the Soviet Union actively sought to advance women at all levels of society.”